‘Festivals key to evolution of Nigerian literature’

Uzoma Ihejirika is a fellow of the 2015 Writivism festival. He is a prolific short story writer who has featured in a variety of magazines, both online and in print. Here, he talks about the need to have more of such platforms, why he sticks to short story writing and more. Excerpts:     Bookshelf: You were […]

Uzoma Ihejirika is a fellow of the 2015 Writivism festival. He is a prolific short story writer who has featured in a variety of magazines, both online and in print. Here, he talks about the need to have more of such platforms, why he sticks to short story writing and more. Excerpts:    
Bookshelf: You were a fellow at the 2015 Writivism Mentoring workshop. What was the experience like?
Uzoma Ihejirika: It was blessed and still is a blissful experience because I still keep in touch with my mentor Yewande Omotoso. She helped me a lot during the mentorship period with her words of advice, stories and articles on writing she sent to me. She helped provide me a clearer sense of what I had set out to do. Prior to the mentorship period, there was always the thought at the back of my mind that said I could write, but I still felt something was missing – a direction, a focus, and that was where the mentorship came in handy, filling that space with rich experience. I now believe no matter how talented a writer is he or she will have to seek guidance from those who have gone ahead in this mazy world of writing. And for all that, I say a big thank you to Writivism and Yewande Omotoso.
Bookshelf: What specific things did you learn? 
Ihejirika: The mentorship was very helpful in character building, plotting, punctuation, and a new one I hadn’t heard of before – staging. This deals with scenery, how settings in themselves can set the reader up for what to expect. Also helpful to me was that my mentor made it clear that despite a story having multiple themes, a writer still has a particular idea stuck at the back of his mind of what he or she expects the story to achieve. And that no matter how a writer meanders, he or she should not lose sight of that idea, as it guides other ideas. I learnt a lot.
Bookshelf: When and how did you start writing?
Ihejirika: I started writing in secondary school. Before then, I can’t say I was passionate about anything, but just lived life as it came, no goals or aspirations. And then one day, all that changed. I watched a Nigerian movie titled ‘My Baby.’ It has Nkem Owoh, Patience Ozokwor, and a host of other actors and actresses in it. The movie focuses on numerous issues in marital life, such as polygamy, the frantic search for a male child, and the deprivation of certain fundamental rights to the female child. So, after the movie, I felt I could write something like that. So I penned my first short story titled ‘House to Home’ which shared several themes with ‘My Baby,’ particularly the question of if the male child is more important than the female. That was how I started.
Bookshelf: You seem bent on short story writing. Do you intend to explore other aspects of writing?
Ihejirika: Well, I won’t say I am bent on writing short stories only. All I do is follow where the muse leads me. I have tried my hands on poetry and a friend told me I wrote prose disguised as poetry. Since then, I haven’t written poems again, not that I felt discouraged though, no, but because I felt, after a critical look at myself and my writing, that it was best if I stuck to prose. But if one day the muse leads me to poetry, drama or even painting, I will gladly follow.
Bookshelf: Your latest story, ‘Chidera’ was published in an online magazine. How do you draw inspiration for your works?
Ihejirika: This is a difficult question for me to answer, and I fear I might not do a good job answering it. I really do not have a definite way of drawing inspiration; I just seem to write whatever captures and holds my attention. But if I must say, I am chiefly inspired by things I experience in my life, things that happen to my family and friends, things that happen in other people’s lives, the workings of the world. Basically, these things inspire me.
Bookshelf: ‘Chidera’ explores issues of trust, the place of family in relationships and marriage. What do you hope to achieve through the story?
Ihejirika: One thing I have learned is that things don’t usually go our way and we find ourselves making tough decisions that could make or mar us. But I have always believed people should follow their hearts, shut out the world and listen to themselves. I hope those who read the story learn what it means to follow their hearts, because I too have found myself making tough decisions, and some of those decisions I still regret. But we should all try.
Bookshelf: How many stories have you published so far?
Ihejirika: I have written quite a few. Most are online, others, in print. But I have not kept count.
Bookshelf: What do you hope to see as Nigerian literature continues to evolve?
Ihejirika: I hope to see more platforms for writers, more literary magazines, publishing houses, festivals, contests, more and more of the positives. Hopefully, all these will come to pass.
Bookshelf: Do you see yourself building a career around writing?
Ihejirika: Yes, hopefully. I guess I have started building.
Bookshelf: What do you aim to achieve each time you write a story?
Ihejirika: First and foremost, what I hope to do is entertain the reader. I believe that if your story doesn’t hold attention, then it will be next to impossible for the reader to get the profound messages you might have imbedded in the work. So when that is achieved, every other thing will follow.
Bookshelf: Can you name two works that have had profound impact on your writing?
Ihejirika: When it comes to influences I can be very inconsistent. One thing may hold me in awe today and the next day, another comes in to take its place. But two people have had the most influence, and they are Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Toni Kan. When I first read Adichie’s ‘Purple Hibiscus,’ I was like, chai, how did she do it? The writing totally floored me. I said to myself, One day, I will write as good as this. As for Toni Kan, it was neither his books nor his short stories or poems, but a text message. Earlier I said I wrote a story titled ‘House to Home’ and so inspired and sure of myself, sent it to Toni Kan for his Sunday Sun Review back then. I waited two weeks for his reply before it came. It read: ‘Good one, but be patient.’ Call it naivety, or overconfidence, but I thought what Mr. Kan meant was that I have written a good story and he will publish it because there is already a long line of accepted stories waiting to be published. So I waited a month before it dawned on me he meant I might have something, but I needed to be patient with myself and my writing. So I took his words to heart, took a short break from writing and just read books.
Bookshelf: What are you working on at the moment?
Ihejirika: More stories…
Bookshelf: Are you contemplating a full length novel anytime soon?
Ihejirika: No. Although I have a children’s story that keeps getting longer and longer, I’m still uncertain as to what it wants to be.
Bookshelf: Any particular reason why you are sticking to short stories?
Ihejirika: I guess it’s the chance for brevity the form gives. I don’t know about other writers, but as for me, short story writing has helped build my writing skills. It has offered an opportunity for me to push myself to the limits and get more attuned to this craft called writing.